New York City is perhaps one of the best places to celebrate Halloween. For one thing, New Yorkers love the holiday. Countless kids go trick-or-treating while their parents go to holiday parties. And no matter where you go, from Manhattan to Queens and the Bronx to Brooklyn, everyone is dressed up. Everyone goes big on Halloween in the Big Apple! So with that said, where are the best spots in New York to celebrate the holiday? Well, many would argue that Greenwich Village, Green Wood Cemetery, Central Park, the Mark Twain House, and Chelsea top the list. Check them out and see if you'll agree!
Greenwich Village
Among the most popular
neighborhoods in New York City, Greenwich Village is always a great time! But it's an especially hot spot every Halloween. It's here where you can watch The Village Halloween Parade, where locals and tourists alike dress in their scariest (for some, sexiest) costumes and walk down the street. Think skeleton on stilts, twin clowns walking hand-in-hand, and even a few floating ghosts along the way. While it's not as big as, say, Macy's iconic Thanksgiving Parade, it's still a grand old time. It's almost surprising how New York actually takes Halloween so seriously!
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Mark Twain House
Since you're already in Greenwich Village, why not stop by the Mark Twain House too? Named the “House of Death,” the former home of the famed American author is a definite must-see when you celebrate Halloween in New York City. It's pretty confusing at first, sure, considering that Mark Twain's novels aren't exactly scary. He's no Bram Stoker, after all. But his Romanesque residence at 14 West 10th Street is said to be among the most haunted places in the city, perhaps even in the entire country. While there's no guarantee you'll see ghosts, there's definitely something there!
Source: Mark Twain House
Green-Wood Cemetery
What better place to celebrate the scariest
holiday in the US—or all around the world!—than in a cemetery? Green-Wood Cemetery is the ultimate Halloween hotspot in New York City. Located in Brooklyn, it's a 478-acre Gothic necropolis where the eerie elegance will send shivers down your spine. Fortunately, the cemetery itself is in on the fun. Every October, just in time for Halloween, they host all sorts of walking tours after dark. It's the perfect activity to learn about the historic graveyard, get to know the people buried there, and of course, get some goosebumps!
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Blood Manor
If you're a fan of Jimmy Fallon, you've likely seen his visit to the Blood Manor horror house with Kevin Hart. It's a funny clip you can watch online, but is the attraction really all that scary? The answer is yes, it is! From killer clowns to bleeding dolls, Blood Manor is not for the faint of heart. Every corner has something or someone lurking about, waiting to give you the scare of your life. And if two full-grown men can't help but shriek their brains out, what more anyone else?
Source: Blood Manor- New York's Premier Haunted Attraction Facebook Page
Holy Trinity Church
A church is probably the last place you'd ever consider going to on Halloween, but the Holy Trinity Church on West 82nd Street really is worth checking out. On top of its magnificent architecture, the church hosts a candlelight concert of Halloween classics every Halloween. Picture it: a massive church filled with lighted candles as a string quartet play the themes for “Beetlejuice,” “The Addams Family,” “Psycho,” and “Stranger Things.” It may sound fun and probably even gimmicky at first, but the performance, paired with such a chilling ambiance, is truly spell-binding!
Source: Wikimedia Commons/ Beyond My Ken
Central Park
Ahh,
Central Park! Possibly the most famous park in the entire world, is there any doubt that it's also one of the best places to celebrate Halloween in New York City? There are loads of fun to be had in this iconic space, even more so when it's a holiday. Specifically, you can't miss the Pumpkin Flotilla
every autumn. Locals bring their carved jack-o'-lantern to the Harlem Meer and let them float in an eerie yet utterly fascinating parade. From afar, the glowing lanterns almost look like a parade of souls wandering about during All Hallow's Eve.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Bronx Park
The other parks in New York City are also great for Halloween. One of which is Bronx Park, more specifically, the Bronx Zoo. Their annual “Boo at The Zoo” event welcomes the entire family for all sorts of Halloween fun. Kids can go trick-or-treating on-site, there are musical puppet shows, arts & crafts activities, and even some interactive magic shows. And of course, there are still the scary (in an adorable way) animals who live in the Bronx Zoo. It's the best place to go when you want to spend the holiday with your entire family.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Chelsea
Halloween is all about parties, right? And what's the best place for parties in the Big Apple? The trendy Chelsea district. The bars and nightclubs that line this popular area are perfect for those who want to let loose and have fun on Halloween night. Entertaining
drag shows and cabaret performances are also must-sees! They amp up the energy just in time for the scariest night of the year. And for more high-brow entertainment, you can also catch the dramatic plays in the Chelsea theaters. Every Halloween, they perform theater versions of Alfred Hitchcock films and the like.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Coney Island
And finally, there's Coney Island in Brooklyn. Widely regarded as the first (or at least among the oldest) amusement park in the world, such a place is rife with all sorts of horror stories and urban legends. Although the park itself hosts numerous Halloween events every year, it's the fact that Coney Island has had such a long history that makes it the perfect place to celebrate the holiday. You can just imagine that ghosts are walking about with the living during All Hallows' Eve. Sounds spooky, doesn’t it?
Source: Wikimedia Commons
If you're celebrating Halloween in New York City this year, you need to know the best spots! From parks and haunted houses to even a cemetery, you'd be surprised at the best Halloween spots in the Big Apple.
